The government says that Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama's New Year message was flatly ignored by the Fiji Times, giving their readership, including Naca Nabukavou, the false impression that the Prime Minister had not addressed the Fijian public since Christmas.
The Department of Information states that it is a serious lapse that a major national address from Prime Minister Bainimarama received no coverage in the Fiji Times.
However it says that it is not surprising, given the long string of one‑sided and unfair reporting from the newspaper.
The government says moving forward, they would hope that any national address from the Head of Government be given the news attention it warrants, because every Fijian rightly deserves to hear from their Prime Minister.
Naca Nabukavou made the claim in a Letters to the Editor that the Fijian public has not heard the Prime Minister address the Fijian people from Christmas until 12th January 2019.
The Department of Information says in reality, the Prime Minister recorded and released a New Year message to the nation on 31st December 2018 wishing all Fijians well in 2019.
Both TV stations aired the Prime Minister's New Year message before the evening news on 1st January 2019.
A news article based on his message with the full video was also prominently posted on the fijivillage.com and the article was also aired on our radio stations.
We are currently trying to speak to Fiji Times.
